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A Runner's Mountain Range |
From any direction, the Rattlesnake is a runner’s paradise. Nine
trailheads provide access to its interior. Missoulians usually head out from
the main Rattlesnake trailhead where we have our pick from the dozens of
spectacular routes branching from the old roadbed paralleling Rattlesnake Creek.
The possibility exists to venture well over 50 miles from this trailhead
without hitting a maintained road. There are mountains too, some reaching
nearly 9,000 feet; mountains that collect over 300 inches of snowfall each
winter and remain covered through much of June. 4,000 foot climbs serve as
proving ground for Missoula area athletes and it’s not uncommon to cross paths
with some of Montana’s finest on a morning run.
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Credit: Meg Nemitz, U.S.F.S. |
In a case of situational irony, it’s the Rattlesnake’s
proximity to Missoula that kept it largely undeveloped. The watershed’s 40
mountain lakes and streams, supported by an average of 100 inches of annual precipitation,
provide cold, clear water. The water is of such high quality that it served as Missoula’s
municipal water supply for nearly a century. Protecting the water meant
protecting the land. The watershed was spared the development and resource
extraction common in other drainages.
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Stuart Peak and a couple of Rattlesnake gems - Credit: UM Mansfield Library |
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Big Snow Country - Credit: UM Mansfield Library |
In 1936, the Montana Power Company, owners of Missoula’s
municipal water works, started buying private land in the upper Rattlesnake—an
area that once supported over 100 residents—in an effort to further protect
the water supply. Montana Power allowed recreational access throughout this
time, so generations of Montanans took advantage of the Rattlesnake corridor to
hunt, fish, hike, climb, ski, and run.
But in 1956, after Montana Power sold off some of the timber
in the watershed’s upper reaches and the road network expanded, locals started to
express concern over the fate of the area. One-third of the Rattlesnake was
privately owned, so the threat of future development existed. It’s not
altogether clear if it was growing conflict over motorized use, logging activity,
the 1964 passage of the Wilderness Act and the development of the American
environmental movement, or a combination of these factors, but Missoulians took
action and devised a plan to turn Missoula’s backyard into Wilderness.
The local conservationists won the support of Montana’s
congressional delegation and, in 1979, Montana Representative Pat Williams introduced
the first of two bills to acquire private lands within the Rattlesnake drainage and designate
it a National Recreation Area and Wilderness. A year later, Montana Senator Max
Baucus—a former Missoula resident, 3:01 marathoner, and in all likelihood likely
the only member of Congress to ever run an ultramarathon—submitted the
following statement in support of the Rattlesnake legislation:
"My vested interest in the area, which we simply refer to as
'The Rattlesnake,' is shared by thousands of other Missoulians and other
Montanans. On a sunny September day, looking from the heart of downtown
Missoula, one can easily see the peaks that form the heartland of the
Rattlesnake: Mt. Stuart, Murphy Peak, Mosquito Peak, and others. Indeed, this
proximity to one of Montana’s larger urban areas is one reason why there is
such widespread local popularity for protection of these unique wildlands…. this
legislation will create a legacy in which Montana in general can take great
pride."
The bill passed and the President signed the measure into
law. Years later, Williams summarized what protection of the area meant to
Missoulians: “The best backyard in America.”
Running the Rattlesnake, we see the occasional signs of what unfolded
there, a cabin or rusted metal something, but most often we see forest and
mountains and nothing else. If we do see people, we see people enjoying
themselves. Runners are common these days. There are plenty of bikers too. There
are even groups of kids with magnifying glasses staring at the plants that blur
beneath our strides. It truly is an impressive backyard.
The Mountains are Calling |
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